FREE! Six Week Yoga Series

I am super excited to announce that I will be offering a six week yoga series at Great Hills Park pavilion! This yoga series is FREE and open to all levels of yogis, even if you have never practiced before! Please come to as many of the sessions as you like but if you come to all six, you will be entered into a drawing, where one lucky yogi will receive a spot in my next 10 week program, Essential Self Care (a $400 value)! Details for the free yoga series are below.

When:

Saturdays 9-10AM from April 4 through May 9.

Where:

Great Hills Park Pavilion

http://www.greathillspark.org/parkinfo.php

Cost:

Free! Bring a friend!

What should I bring?

A yoga mat, a beach towel to sit on, and some water. I will have a limited number of yoga mats to loan out if you don't have one yet.

Bonus!

Anyone who attends all 6 classes will be entered into a drawing, where one lucky yogi will receive a spot in my next 10 week program, Essential Self Care (a $400 value)! 

Please let me know if you have any questions. I look forward to seeing you at the park!

Create a personal and sacred space

My husband is awesome but he does have one flaw, he rarely puts things back into their proper place. Instead I find piles of tools, receipts, socks, etc. lying all over the house. I have learned to deal with this but I did have to insist on one exception, my yoga room. My yoga room is my sacred space. I can keep it as clean as I like and he does not leave his stuff in there. Therefore, when I get stressed and I feel myself starting to get even more anxious because the house is a mess, I know that I can always head into MY room and it will always be clean and clutter free. I also have full rein to decorate and arrange the room as I like.  Therefore, in this room, I am able to let my mind relax without the distraction of a messy space. It is truly a reflection of me and I am able to reconnect to my true self there.

So today, I invite you to designate a space in your home that is just for you. This can be as simple as a corner of your bedroom or even a full room like I did. Take the time to make this space a reflection of who you are at your very best. For me that meant simple, clean, with little clutter. Keep your space free of other distractions so that when you are out of sorts and need to return to your center, you can go to your space and reconnect to you.


My yoga room and personal refuge...

Is Awareness the Key to Lasting Health and Happiness?

I love practicing yoga and have experienced many of its benefits since my first class including strength, flexibility, and greater self-acceptance. I loved it so much that I got my teaching certificate. But I kept coming across articles about yoga that insisted that once you start practicing, you will start making better food and life choices. You will naturally begin to lose weight, feel radiant all the time, manage your stress, and your skin will start to glow because of that new self-care routine you have developed, all because you began practicing yoga.

So why, after years of practicing and teaching yoga was I still eating Cheetos for breakfast? I found that I had even gained a few pounds, still loved delicious processed food, and I was completely overwhelmed all the time. What was I missing?! I kept wondering what was wrong with me. Why am I not a radiant, glowing, healthy yogi? I mean, I knew what I should eat, that I should exercise, and get lots of sleep to feel healthier; I just had no desire to actually put that into practice.

And then I started taking a course in Ayurveda. Ayurveda is considered yoga’s sister science and is a system of health and well being that seeks to bring balance to the body, mind, and emotions through healthy eating and daily habits and rhythms based on those found in nature. Ayurveda teaches us to consider how we are feeling physically, mentally, and emotionally and to become aware of what might have caused the feeling and how to balance out those feelings. For example, if my tummy hurts every time I eat a big bag of Cheetos, I should stop eating Cheetos. This might sound totally obvious, but this was a turning point for me. When I really started to consider the effects on my body of eating unhealthy processed food, drinking too many glasses of wine before bed, staying up late at night, skipping my morning run, etc., I was astounded. All of these poor choices were making me feel terrible! Finally, I got it! Bringing awareness to how my choices affected how I was feeling, made it really hard to keep making unhealthy decisions.

Don’t get me wrong, yoga teaches awareness as well and you hear teachers all the time talk about taking your yoga off of your mat. But while I had become very aware of how my yoga practice affected my body on the mat, I had not learned to take that practice of awareness off my mat and into my daily life. I have since brought this practice of awareness to all facets of my life. I notice when I feel grumpy, sad, anxious, stressed, heavy, achy, or otherwise rotten and I consider what caused those feelings and what I can do in the future to avoid feeling that way or to manage it. Similarly, I notice what causes me to feel happy, content, calm, light, or strong and I keeping doing those things. It is pretty simple but it has resulted in profound changes to how I live my life. I now know how it feels to easily maintain a healthy weight, to manage my stress, and to basically feel amazing every day! Maybe awareness really is the key to lasting health and happiness.

I WILL...!

After almost 38 years, I am finally content with who I am. My body isn’t perfect, I have cellulite and some rolls around my waist, but I am healthy. I still struggle with stress and overwhelm from time to time, but I know how to manage my anxiety. My mind still wanders during meditation, but I meditate regularly. I have really tight hamstrings, but I still practice yoga almost every day. My relationship with my husband is fantastic and I love my job. So all in all, I am really happy with my life.

But I don’t believe that being happy and content means that everything should stay the same. I definitely do not want my life to become stagnant. I want to learn new ways to eat fresh, local produce. I want to finally kick my caffeine habit (oh Dr. Pepper how I love thee!). It would be great to lose a few pounds and I would love to finally nail sundial pose. So while I am finally confident in who I am, I also desire more. And I think that as human beings it is really healthy to regularly strive to challenge ourselves intellectually, physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

Every day, I want to be an even better version of myself. I know that I am not alone. So if we all honestly desire to better ourselves, then why does that new gym membership go unused, why are we still making poor food choices, and why are we still staying up late to watch TV or answer one last email when we know that we will only feel lousy tomorrow because of it? I believe that while our intentions, goals, and resolutions come from a place of genuine desire to be our best selves, we spend too much time wishing things will change without actively making the necessary changes required to reach those goals.

We must first begin by setting clear, actionable goals. We must actively make changes to our diets, lifestyles, relationships, schedule, etc. in order to affect change. Hoping for change just isn’t going to cut it. How many times have you said “I wish I could lose some weight,” “I would love to meditate every day,” “Wouldn’t it be great to get more sleep?” Wishing and hoping for change without action is a total waste of time. What if you instead stated your goals as such: I will lose 10 pounds; I will meditate every day; I will get more sleep. Do you see how that changes the goal from a hope to an action? What is your “I will…” statement?

Secondly, true habit change cannot happen without slow, steady progress towards your goal. When we bite off more than we can chew, we usually end up feeling deprived, frustrated, overwhelmed, and/or exhausted. That is why gyms lure you into signing a contract: they know that after the first month’s enthusiasm wears off, you will stop coming and that is when they make a lot of money. Instead, focus on making small manageable changes that move you closer to your goals. Sounds simple, right? It is! And then, once that change becomes a habit, move onto the next small change. It can take a long time to form a habit, so think long term success here. Take small steps towards your goal and frequently reward yourself (healthy rewards of course, like a massage or a small piece of really decadent chocolate) for making progress. This is the key to forming good, healthy habits that last long after your 10 class yoga pass has expired.

Once you have your “I will…” statement, you can then decide how to best break the goal down into small steps. I will lose 10 pounds by eating 1 cookie a day instead of 2. I will meditate every day for 1 minute. I will get more sleep by going to bed 10 minutes earlier every night this week. Then once you become comfortable with those changes, take it to the next step. For example; I will meditate every day for 2 minutes. Remember, by taking small actionable steps you will reach your goal and will have developed a sustainable new habit in the process, win-win!

Go ahead and take a few moments to write down your goals. Circle the one that will have the most profound effect on your life. Remember to limit it to just one goal for now to prevent feeling overwhelmed. Then translate it into an “I will...” statement. Finally decide what small step you can take to get you moving towards you goal.

I want to support you in becoming your best self because most of us also need a third element, accountability. Comment below, email me (beth@bethmarek.com), message me on Facebook, or better yet, click the link below to schedule a free 20 minute strategy session (This is normally worth $50!) with me in order to start working towards your goals. Let's do this!

Schedule a FREE! 20 minute appointment with me: https://www.timetrade.com/book/1FD6R